Jay Sixspeedrt Posted July 22, 2012 Report Share Posted July 22, 2012 I had not towed my boat trailer at night, but the tail lights/ marker lights appeared to run normally. Today, it was foggy, so I ran my headlights. After about 5 minutes, I noticed the side marker lights on my boat trailer were out. I pulled over to check it out. I found that the taillights on the Journey were out too. Brake lights/turn signals still worked, but the tail lamps were out. I unplugged the wiring harness to the trailer - and the tail lamps on the Journey were still out. I assumed that I had blown a fuse? So I continued on to the lake. After I got done fishing, pulled the boat from the water... reconnected my trailer lights. And I now noticed the Journey's tail lights and the trailer lights were working! ??? I wonder what happened? Are the tail lights protected by a relay that tripped due to too much load? And when the relay cooled down, it reset? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigtsr Posted July 22, 2012 Report Share Posted July 22, 2012 I would say that the TIPM had deactivated the tail lights but usually (past experience) it would require a reset (dealer) or disconnect of battery to return things to normal. Its senses any overcurrents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay Sixspeedrt Posted July 22, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 22, 2012 Well, it returned to normal on it's own.... so no need for a trip to the dealer. I put the Journey up on ramps this AM and took a peek.... the trailer hitch dealer installed a modulite type connector up behind the tail light lense on the driver side. He must have pulled the tail light lense to install. I'll have to pull it and take a look to see how it's wired. I wonder if the Modulite itself might have an internal overload sensor that tripped and reset? Not sure how that could affect the Journey's tail lights though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay Sixspeedrt Posted July 23, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 23, 2012 Well, I removed the tail lense so I could inspect the wiring. Here is what I found installed. - here are some photos and a link http://www.towready.com/content/products.aspx?lvl=3&parentid=1500&catID=1545∂=119130 This is using the vehicle circuit for power - it doesn't have a dedicated power supply like a Modulite Also, oddly - Green is supposed to be the right turn signal per the labeling on the Tow Rite Module, and the written instructions, but he has green wired as the ground - you can see it going down in the photo - it's connected to a mounting post. I'm not sure how the wiring functions correctly but it does - the turn signals DO work normally.. But I am thinking the vehicle wiring can't supply sufficient amperage to drive the vehicle and trailer tail lights without overloading eventually?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay Sixspeedrt Posted July 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 30, 2012 Bump for info. Would a modulite (powered directly from the electrical system) reduce the load on the vehicle's tail lights? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigtsr Posted July 30, 2012 Report Share Posted July 30, 2012 I suspect you have already hit the mfrs website for info. Possibly you should tackle the rewire yourself if you feel confident and do it according to the instructions. Who knows the guy that wired it treated it like house wiring where green is ground. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay Sixspeedrt Posted July 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 30, 2012 (edited) Yeah, I double checked the installation instructions too for this unit. Matches the labeling on the chart - green is right turn lamp. I guess I should have just done it myself in the first place. So much for a 'professional' installation. What I can't figure - how do the turn signals WORK on the trailer? Right signal works fine, even though green is wired to ground. Even the tail lights work... for a while. Maybe it would work if wired correctly... although I think the load may be too heavy for the LED tail lamp circuit - isn't that an issue? Edited July 30, 2012 by Jay Sixspeedrt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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